Saturn Icy Moon Enceladus: Geysers Tied to Orbit

This photo of water geysers spouting from Saturn's moon Enceladus was taken by NASA's Cassini orbiter in October 2007

Credit: Cassini Imaging Team, SSI, JPL, ESA, NASA

Steady geysers of water ice on one of Saturn's icy moons appear to erupt more strongly when the moon is farthest from its ringed parent planet, scientists say.

The warm vents at the south pole of Saturn's moon Enceladus emit vast plumes of water vapor and ice out into space.

While these plumes have been studied for some time, scientists have now observed a correlation between the intensity of the plume and the location of the moon in its orbit around Saturn.

Using data from the Cassini spacecraft, Cornell University research associate Matthew Hedman and a team of scientists found that when the 314-mile (505 kilometers) moon nears its farthest point from Saturn, the plumes seen in the Cassini data appear brighter.

This suggests that the vents in the southern portion of Enceladus are expanding, allowing more dust to escape the fissures at that point in the moon's orbit.

As the moon nears its home planet, however, the vents contract, making the plumes less pronounced.